VIA Metropolitan Transit Police has released its disciplinary records for the period spanning August 1, 2024 through September 30, 2025, a fourteen-month window that coincides with the lifespan of a federal civil-rights lawsuit recently dismissed against the agency and several of its officers. The records, provided in response to a public-information request, consist almost entirely of administrative actions for low-level infractions, with no investigative files or significant misconduct cases included.

The release comes shortly after the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas formally dismissed the lawsuit brought by community auditor Marcos Rios. On September 26, 2025, the court signed an order granting the parties’ joint stipulation of dismissal, ending the case with prejudice and closing the file. The lawsuit had alleged unlawful detention and inadequate training after Rios recorded VIA officers in a public setting. Earlier court filings in August and September indicated the parties had reached a settlement agreement and were finalizing dismissal paperwork.

What the Records Show

The disciplinary documents provided by VIA reflect a narrow range of incidents, many involving the loss or mishandling of department-issued equipment. On September 6, 2025, Officer Lance Solari received a written reminder after reporting that he had lost his VIA-issued cell phone the day before. The memo cites VIA’s policy on negligent loss of equipment but provides no further detail about how the device went missing.

A second incident involving equipment occurred earlier in the year on August 6, 2025, when Officer Robert Acosta was issued a written reminder for reporting another VIA-issued phone as lost. The summary does not indicate whether the loss resulted from negligence or circumstances beyond his control, only that the device could not be located.

The department also issued discipline related to the handling of police credentials. On August 7, 2025, Officer Jonathan Bernal reported that his badge, police identification and wallet were stolen. A written reminder was issued, stating only that the theft occurred and citing the department’s policy requiring officers to secure sensitive equipment.

In another administrative case from March 21, 2025, Officer McNeal Phauls reported that his cell phone fell through a hole in his pocket. The resulting written reminder notes that he failed to secure his sensitive items but does not describe any investigative findings or review of the circumstances.

The oldest record released, dated September 22, 2024, concerns Officer Alan Baker, who reported that his department-issued equipment was stolen from the back of his personal vehicle while parked at a local gym. The memo states that he failed to adequately secure the items and may be responsible for restitution.

Additional Documents Released

One of the few non-equipment-related incidents involved Officer Rodrigo Rodriguez. On May 9, 2025, Rodriguez failed to secure the hood of a VIA police vehicle, resulting in the windshield being damaged when the hood struck it. The report labels the event as a preventable accident and concludes that Rodriguez did not comply with employee guidelines. The summary contains no detailed account of the event beyond the basic factual statement.

Another case involved Investigator Daniel Jaime, who received a written reprimand on September 25, 2025 after placing his department-issued radio into a vehicle cup holder with enough force to crack the holder. Jaime ordered and paid for a replacement. The memo warns that further instances of damage or poor judgment may lead to elevated discipline but does not reference any investigative steps.

VIA also released two documents relating to Officer Esperanza Di Costanzo, a canine handler. On April 23, 2025, she received a formal notice documenting a failure to pass a federal explosives-detection canine certification, as well as a prior failure in 2024. A second notice dated May 29, 2025 states that she was removed from the canine program and reassigned to patrol following another unsuccessful evaluation on May 21. Neither document contains an investigative report or any internal review explaining the failures.

Is This the Full Picture of VIA’s Internal Oversight?

If the records provided represent the complete disciplinary output of VIA Police between August 2024 and September 2025, then the department experienced no higher-level misconduct, no sustained allegations tied to officer conduct in the field and no internal affairs investigations resulting in actionable discipline. For a transit-policing agency serving a metropolitan region, this is notable.

Whether this reflects an unusually uneventful year, or whether most issues were handled informally without formal documentation, cannot be determined from the records alone. What is clear is that the disciplinary documents released by VIA paint a picture of a department whose recorded infractions during this period largely involved misplaced equipment, minor damage and certification issues, with no major policy violations documented.

The absence of more substantive disciplinary records leaves open the central question: is this truly all that occurred within VIA Police over more than a year, or is this simply all that was formally documented?

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